Halloween costumes are getting very expensive. I remember as a child going to the five and dime to pick out a vinyl costume complete with mask. For a few dollars, I could be anything I wanted, from Wonder Woman to a skeleton. Today, it is not unusual to spend $40-50 on average per costume. But there are ways to save money and still get a great costume for your kids or yourself. Here are a few ideas you can use.
Disney
I love the Disney store costumes. They are well made, sturdy and generally very warm. Plus they come in all of the friendly characters that kids love. It used to be that I would wait until after Halloween to pick up the next year’s costume at a deep discount. But the past few years, this is getting more difficult. Regular consumers are in competition people who buy up the costumes and resell them the following year on auction sites, such as eBay. But luckily, one of the things Disney seems to be doing is discounting their costumes earlier. The week of Halloween is now my target week. And if I am lucky enough to find a costume, I know that I can always resell it for close to what I originally paid.
Make it yourself
This year, my son decided to skip the commercialism of popular characters and become something classic. He will be a robot. We made this costume together as a family, shopping for the parts, which included aluminum baking pans, dryer duct and bike reflectors. Underneath, he will wear a gray sweatshirt and sweat pants. He is so proud of this costume, and it was inexpensive to make.
Thrift stores
Goodwill and other thrift stores have tons and tons of Halloween costumes, donated by folks who wore them once last year. Or, you can use the thrift store to pick up clothes you can create into costumes, such as a bridal dress, a prom dress, a hobo, an old man or old lady, or a scarecrow outfit.
Have a costume exchange
Chances are that you know plenty of other families with kids. Why not host a costume exchange. Everyone brings over their old costumes and swaps for others. You can decide whether the costumes get returned after Halloween or kept by their new owners.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
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